awful mpg help

[6763edward]

Hi I have recently purchased 740 gle with fuel injection but the fuel consumption is 18.8 round town also it seems to almost want to stall when ticking over. Can any one help please.

[OldBlueVolvo]

Is the ignition system in good order? i.e. plugs, HT leads, dizzy cap & rotor arm?

[Easy Rhino]

Originally Posted by OldBlueVolvo

Is the ignition system in good order? i.e. plugs, HT leads, dizzy cap & rotor arm?

Start there for sure.

How many miles and what's the compression?

How about those O2 sensors?

[zetor160]

You're not doing too badly at nearly 19mpg driving a 740 around town in this weather...I try to avoid driving mine around town too much because of this reason lol

Maintenance wise, as already said is: no1.dist.cap-clean thoroughly,inspect for damage, wear, cracks etc and be ready to replace if needed - same with rotor arm, a clean up of these will work wonders..as I found on mine earlier this week!
I might add these are often neglected items on the maintenance list of many unscrupulous previous owners!

[Oilydad]

Hi and welcome.

Usual things have been mentioned, especially the possibility of an internally dirty/damp or hairline cracked distributor cap and to those I would add the air filter. But the D. Cap would be my first thing to inspect. Bit of a pain to get off, but it's probably pretty grotty inside if it hasn't been off for a while, If it's the same setup as the one on the 940, at the end of the camshaft, then you'll need a small 8mm spanner to get the three captive bolts off. Once it's off either replace it, or clean up the contacts with a thin file, dry out the inside, and clean the rotor too.

A blocked or dirty air filter can increase your fuel consumption quite a lot. They are usually just blown out with an airline during services but need renewing every few years.

Plugs and leads too, are another item that people ignore, and they can often be in appalling condition. Nothing lasts forever.

You'll probably find that a good tune up will give you a few more MPG. If it's trying to stall, that would suggest something isn't right.
The good thing is, it's running, so probably nothing too drastic. Without more info, Dizzy cap is my favourite reason though.

[oman5]

I hate to say it but that MPG sounds about right for a 740. they are not known for good economy. you'll be lucky to see 30 on a steady 60 mph run.

[S60D5-185]

Originally Posted by 6763edward

Hi I have recently purchased 740 gle with fuel injection but the fuel consumption is 18.8 round town also it seems to almost want to stall when ticking over. Can any one help please.

Lamda Sensor?

['88740GL]

Hi, could you upload a picture of the engine bay? this will give us an idea of what kind of fuel system we are dealing with, and whether or not its electronic or mechanical. What you are getting does sound about right..you'll know when its out of tune and its consuming more fuel....12-15 would be the worse case like mine was! This car should never let you down though.....at first i loved mine to bits...then hated and cursed her for me finding 'surprises' like a few holes in the floors....now i love her! love hate relationships! haha

[Laney760]

Manual or automatic? You're getting about the same mpg as I used to get out of my auto 740GL estate which had a full Volvo service history and good compression and the reason why, since it was stolen, I've bought diesel tanks, preferably with manual gearbox

[scapa]

Originally Posted by 6763edward

Hi I have recently purchased 740 gle with fuel injection but the fuel consumption is 18.8 round town also it seems to almost want to stall when ticking over. Can any one help please.

Sounds about right for a 740.
Just shows how good cars like the D5 have become, same situation you would be getting almost 40 mpg